Having dismissed Claudio Ranieri on Thursday afternoon and put Scott Parker in charge until end of season, Fulham meet Chelsea at Craven Cottage in a huge London derby.
The Cottagers are ten points adrift of safety and desperately need a win here as Chelsea aim to close the gap to fifth-placed Arsenal as the top four race continues to gather pace.
Team news
Embed from Getty ImagesFulham will be without Andre Schurrle as he recovers from a viral illness but should return next weekend.
Marcus Bettinelli and Alfie Mawson are both sidelined with knee injuries.
Chelsea have no fresh injury concerns as Kepa Arrizabalaga looks set to return in goal, having sat out Wednesday’s win over Tottenham as punishment for refusing to be subbed in Carabao Cup Final.
Marco van Ginkel (anterior cruciate ligament) and Danny Drinkwater (Achilles) are long-term absentees for the Blues.
Form
Fulham come into this game with just one win in all competitions during 2019 so far, although have scored in six of their eight games.
Seven of the Cottagers’ last ten conceded goals in past four games have all come in first half, compared to just three after the break.
Chelsea come into this with just two wins from their last five league games, losing their last three on the road.
In fact since 2019 arrived, only two domestic games featuring Chelsea has seen both teams score with both being home games against Newcastle in league then Tottenham in Carabao Cup.
Stat Attack
- Fulham are without a win in last 18 against Chelsea in all competitions (W11, D7).
- Chelsea have scored three goals on each of their last two visits (3-0 April 2013, 3-1 March 2014). Last time that such a situation happened was in August 1965 and October 1966 before then drew 2-2 in December 1967.
- Fulham boast the worst goal difference in any of England’s top four divisions.
- David Luiz has played the most through balls this season in Premier League, making 38 such moves.
- Marcus Bettinelli has produced just one high claim from seven appearances for Fulham this season.
Prediction
Given Chelsea’s poor domestic away form, this is a huge chance for Fulham but I can’t see them taking advantage given their liability of a defence.
In fact, if Chelsea convert their recent home form into away games then I can see a comfortable victory but away fragilities might just seep in a bit.
Prediction: Fulham 1-2 Chelsea
Jake predicts: Fulham 0-2 Chelsea
Prediction: Fulham 1-2 Chelsea